A SHANKLIN hotel could be demolished and replaced with a block of eleven flats.

An outline application has been submitted to the Isle of Wight Council on behalf of Luis and Carol de Castro, the owners of the Roseberry Hotel on Alexandra Road. The couple have owned and managed the business since they bought it in 2000.

A previous application sought approval for 14 apartments, including three for holiday purposes. However, limited space and a ‘cramped appearance’ meant these proposals were withdrawn in December 2017.

The new application has a more traditional design, after the previous contemporary plans were said to negatively draw attention to the prominence of the new development. The new building would be fragmented to fit with the surroundings.

The new scheme will have eleven apartments across three storeys, and eleven car parking spaces to the front.

The decision to demolish the hotel comes after the Mr and Mrs De Castro realised it was not sustainable to continue trading as a hotel, and it was non-viable to invest in it further. The application says the surrounding area is ‘saturated’ with other hotels in similar situations.

Twelve out of 20 rooms in the hotel are no longer suitable as guest accommodation and the remaining eight rooms are ‘seriously questionable’.

The Roseberry hotel was dependant on school parties, relying on them for trade for 14 weeks of the year. However, this market is now dwindling.

The hotel has been on the market for six years, originally advertised at £675,000, but reduced to £595,000. An offer was made for £545,000 however, this never materialised as was conditional on the buyers selling a B&B in Ventnor.

Unable to sell the hotel, the couple decided to redevelop the site for residential purposes.

The application states: “The crux of the issue is the Roseberry Hotel has restricted and substandard accommodation, which does not meet modern visitor expectations.”

Comments can be made on the application until August 17.